The Pacific League
covers the half of the San Gabriel Valley and Pasadena area not covered by the Rio
Hondo League, and it's always competitive. This year, Muir will be the favorite and
it will be a battle to catch the Mustangs for the league's two other best teams, Crescenta
Valley and Pasadena. We don't see either Glendale, hoover, or Arcadia presenting a
serious challenge, so the battle there will be to secure a post-season playoff spot.
The league features several Division I-calibre athletes, including several from
Muir, led by Saint Louis University-signee Ryan Hollins. Chris Tarne and Jimmy
Goffredo at Crescenta Valley may be the smartest athletes and will also present the
biggest perimeter threats in the league, while Pasadena will be led by a plethora of
excellent guards including Dino Wilburn, Duwan Rice, Jesse Banks, Terron Redmond, and Travis Bean.

What follows is what we
know about the teams thus far this season, which in some cases is a lot, and in others, it
means we're looking at old rosters and predicting who will be returning and which younger
players will be stepping up. The schedules are accurate as far as we know and they
have been provided by the CIF-SS office. We encourage coaches to send us their official
rosters (via e-mail) and any other information
about their teams so we can update these previews.

"Crescenta Valley High School was the consensus pick to
win the Pacific League boys basketball title last season. Yet, Muir ended up taking the
crown. This season, the consensus says Muir will repeat as champions, but Pasadena plans
to prove everyone wrong again. The Bulldogs are on a mission to remind people that there
are more than just two powerhouses in the Pacific League. "I think we're
underestimated by everyone and don't get the respect we deserve," Pasadena coach Tim
Tucker said. "We're out to gain respect." Respect comes from victories and the
Bulldogs feature some of the league's most talented players who should keep them in every
league contest. Guard Dino Wilburn is a two-time all-area selection and averaged 22 points
and six rebounds last season. "Dino is one of the better guards in Southern
California and doesn't get the recognition he deserves," Tucker said. "I never
seen anyone stop him and he doesn't get mentioned with the elite group that he should
be." Pasadena finished in third place last season but had a good run in the
CIF-Southern Section Division II-AA playoffs and advanced to the quarterfinals. Pasadena
plays its typical tough schedule. The Bulldogs face Dorsey, Fairfax and Compton Dominguez
in the first two weeks alone. "It's a monster schedule," Tucker said. "But
I'm not out to finish 25-1. If you're the best and say you're the best, then play the
best." Crescenta Valley has a new coach (Adam Jacobsen) and lost the league
co-MVP (James Jenkins) but still has some of the best guards (Jimmy Goffredo, Chris Tarne)
around. Arcadia could push its way into the top three and Glendale and Hoover figure to be
somewhat stronger."

Muir
was a Division II-A semifinalist last year, drawing a first round bye as the No. 3
seed in the bracket. In the second round, the Mustangs defeated Apple Valley, then
advanced to the quarterfinals where they beat long-time section power Artesia. Muir
then faced Redondo, and simply didn't have enough, falling to the eventual Section Champs.

The Mustangs graduated 7 seniors, including three
starters (talented point guard Horace Wormley, now at Pasadena City College, Brandon
Willis, and Joseph Frazier, who is now playing at CSUN). They return two starters,
Seth Davis, a tough 6'-6" Sr. F, and Jamaal Hall a 6'-3" combo guard, and you
can also look for Saint Louis (D-I) signee Ryan Hollins to join the starting lineup this
season. Muir also has some football talent on their basketball team, including
quarterback Ryan O'Hara who could be a two-sport athlete in college as well, having
committed to Arizona where he will play quarterback. He's an excellent rebounder and has a
nice shot out to about 16' but is especially effective inside. We don't have a
complete roster, but based on what we do know, here's who is returning for the 2001-02
season:

Strengths:
Muir's interior size should be difficult for most opponents to match. Hollins and Davis
give the 'Stangs one of their most talented frontcourts in years. That factor alongside
Muir's perennial quickness should create some solid balance on offense and defense. Hall
should provide some reliable outside shooting.

Concerns:
Muir lost the heart and soul of last year's team with the graduation of seniors Joseph
Frazier, Horace Wormely, and Brandon Willis. Someone will have to step up and take
Frazier's role of defensive stopper, Wormely's skills as floor general, and Willis'
leadership role.

Bottom line:
Muir was the area's best team last season and surprised some outsiders by making it all
the way back to the CIF-SS Division II-A semifinals. This year's group may not be much
better than last year's in terms of talent. But last year's team had a glaring weakness in
the perimeter, and there is no such hole in this group. The league and division are among
some of the toughest around, but Muir should be able to hang with the big boys and could
be playing late into March.

Crescenta Valley gets a new coach and a new look, shorter and faster, and
the Falcons won't be as deep or nearly as tall as they've been the past few years without
the inside presence of James Jenkins (6'-7" F) who graduated in June and is currently
on the roster at San Jose State. Based on what we know about the returners, here's
who is coming back:

This is still a very talented nucleus, and with
Chris Tarne and Jimmy Goffredo, two players with D-I potential, this team will still
challenge for a league title, but it will be tough knocking off a deeper and taller Muir
squad.

The LA Times' Glendale-La Canada edition also
featured some short capsules of a few teams in the region this past Friday (11/23/01) and
here's some of what the Times had to say:

Coach: Adam Jacobsen, first year.
League: Pacific.

Last Season: 21-7, 8-2 in league for second place. Lost in second round of CIF Southern
Section Division IAA playoffs to J.W. North, 78-69.

Jacobsen's quote: "Tarne and Goffredo are our
main guys, but the key for us will be our inside/outside production. We need Kang to
really step in the low post."

LA Times local sportswriter Hamlet Nalbandyan, who
covers the La Canada-Crescenta Valley region, had this to say about the Falcons:

"Goffredo and Tarne lead the area's next best
team [in the opinion of the Times, that was La Canada], Crescenta Valley. With new Coach
Adam Jacobsen at the helm and a new gym, it should be exciting in Falcon land. The duo of
Tarne and Goffredo could average 20 points a game this season, but if CV doesn't get any
inside help -- speaking primarily of 6-6 center Brian Kang -- the Falcons will do no
better than a second-place finish in the Pacific League."

And don't look now, because while the Falcons might
have trouble with Muir, those footsteps they'll be hearing behind them will be the
Pasadena Bulldogs, also a very talented team this year.

Despite only a third place league finish, the
Bulldogas were a talented team which qualified for the II-AA playoffs last season, and
they beat some quality teams. Pasadena beat Agoura (Marmonte #2) in the first round,
then beat Laguna Hills in the second round, finally drawing an ironic game against former
Bulldog Doug Thomas who transferred to Inglewood at the beginning of the 2000-01 season,
and Pasadena fell to the eventual section finalist (Inglewood lost to Section champs and
three-time State Champs Dominguez). We haven't seen a complete roster for this
season's (2001-02) team, but here's who we expect to see on the team:

Pasadena has scheduled an aggressive set of games,
and they'll be appearing in the 1st Annual Westchester Tournament starting next week, as
well as the McDonald's Invitational games over the MLK weekend.

Strengths:
Pasadena's three returning starters will match up well with just about any opponent.
Wilburn can score from anywhere on the court and will gain a lot of attention from
opposing defenses. Clark gives the Bulldogs a serious shot blocking and rebounding threat.
Rice is a pesky defender and solid ball handler.

Concerns:
A brutal schedule is almost certain to put a dent in Pasadena's overall record, just as it
did last year. The team will need someone to step up as a consistent scoring threat
alongside Wilburn and as a team leader.

Bottom line:
Pasadena will not have the area's best record, but by the end of the year the Bulldogs
just might have the best team. They are a team that is easily overlooked for several
reasons. They play a lot of nonleague games out of the area, including tournaments in
Santa Barbara, Westchester and Upland. They haven't had a high-profile Division I prospect
in a couple years and, like their top player, compete with a quiet kind of intensity. Muir
and Crescenta Valley may get the most headlines early, but it wouldn't be a shocker if PHS
grabs the biggest one late with a Pacific League championship.

Hoover didn't
make the playoffs, and as a result, we have very little info on them other than what we
know from last year's roster and what the LA Times published this past Friday 11/23/01 in
their short capsule on teams in the Glendale-La Canada region. We believe that the
following guys will be returning:

Arcadia
qualified for the playoffs last year as an "at-large" entry under the 11-win
rule, and were placed in the Division I-AAA bracket, pulling Canyon Springs in the first
round, where the the Apaches promptly lost by 30 points, 71-41. We're not sure
exactly who is going to return and who is coming up from the jv team, but here's who we
think will be returning from last year's playoff roster:

Strengths:
Arcadia's outside shooting, led by Dohling, should keep the Apaches in most games. Owens
is a solid second scoring option from mid-range. Eleven of 14 players on the rosters are
seniors and should provide plenty of veteran leadership.

Concerns:
No player taller than 6-4. The Apaches will have trouble matching up with Muir, Arcadia
and Crescenta Valley inside. They also may not have the horses to keep up 32 minutes
against a faster team. Team needs to keep winning attitude, even though the school hasn't
won a league title since before any of its players were born.

Bottom line: Arcadia will be hard-pressed to crack
the upper half of the Pacific League. But the Apaches are also no longer pushovers and
could come up and bite an unsuspecting opponent. The Apaches may live and die with the
3-pointer and Dohling's 35 percent ratio from long range will certainly help. Even though
they may take their lumps during league, Arcadia is perfectly capable of playing with the
area's better teams and Jackson is a skilled and charismatic coach who should lead his
group back to the playoffs for a second consecutive season.

Glendale didn't
qualify for the playoffs last season, but the LA Times on Friday, Nov. 23, 2001 did
publish a series of small preview capsules on some of the teams in the Glendale, Verdugo
Hills, La Canada area. Here's what the Times' said about Glendale:

Coach: Steve Snodgress, sixth year.
League: Pacific.
Last Season: 10-16, 2-8 in league for sixth place.
Did not qualify for playoffs.